Authors: Lee Weeks
‘We believe Danielle is being held against her will. There is still time for someone to release her; still time to get her home to her son Jackson. It isn’t too late.’
‘Why are you telling me?’
‘Because you’re right – it’s quite a coincidence that you were there when a friend of your daughter’s was pulled out of the canal and now your daughter goes
missing. But coincidences are a rare thing in my job.’
‘I didn’t know she was a friend of Danielle’s?’
‘Yes. She was. Can I just ask you something else about your work showing people around the sites of London?’
‘Look, I’ve had enough. I’ve told you all I know, now please leave.’ He almost pushed Carter backwards.
‘One minute, Mr Foster.’ Carter didn’t move. ‘It can be here or at the station.’ Foster backed off. ‘Do you ever take people to the Heath?’
‘Hampstead Heath?’
‘Yes, you know, a tour of the parks, that kind of thing?’
Foster bristled with irritation. ‘I have done in the past. I do private work where I drive tourists round and show them the sights. Hampstead Heath is sometimes on the list, depends what
they want. Is that it? I want you to leave my property.’
‘When were you there last?’
‘In the summer.’
‘You haven’t been there in the last week?’
Foster didn’t answer; he stared at Carter then waited for an explanation.
‘Another body was found there. I think you need to call your lawyer, Mr Foster.’
The next morning Ebony sat in the housing office with a ticket number in her hand. Archie was asleep in the buggy. Archie had seen Ebony a few times plus he was a good baby and
used to going to nursery whilst Cabrina worked for an accountancy firm, so he never minded strangers. Archie was a serious baby; very sparing with his smiles. Ebony thought he could just pass as
her child. He had the look of the sun about him: Cabrina was Greek, Carter was half Italian so the mix had produced a stunning baby with a double dose of shiny black hair. Carter had told her what
she needed to know to look after him for a few hours and he’d dressed him all in blue today.
She and Archie had been waiting for an hour when her number was called. She went up to the booth. The young man waited for her to sit. He looked at her file.
‘You’ve been sent over to us from our Luton branch?’
‘Yes.’
‘Can I ask why?’
‘Just had some personal issues. I wanted to make a new start.’
He nodded, barely interested. He just needed an answer that corresponded to a question on his form and a box that needed ticking.
‘Any preference where you’d like to live?’
‘My college is in Holloway, so I don’t mind as long as I can reach it by bus. Somewhere where there’s a park would be good.’
‘Where are you staying now?’
‘We’re sleeping on a friend’s floor.’
Ebony knew what the file said. Robbo had shown her and it was faultless. It said she was to be given priority. The lad shrugged, looked resigned. It was no skin off his nose if she queue-jumped.
Someone somehow thought she deserved it.
He picked up a sheet of available flats.
‘I have something I can offer you by Beacon Park in Hackney Wick. It’s a two-bedroomed apartment on the sixth floor.’ He looked at Ebony’s expression. She was mulling it
over, thinking about the location. ‘There’s a lift,’ he added. ‘Can’t guarantee it works but flats are few and far between – I’d take it if I were you.
It’s on a bus route to Holloway. It’s near Victoria Park – kiddies’ playground.’ She nodded.
‘Thanks.’
‘Do you want to take a look?’
She shook her head. ‘No need. I’ll take it. Thanks.’
‘Okay.’ He left his desk and returned with an envelope. ‘Here are the keys. Here’s the address. The housing officer will be in to make sure it’s all working for
you.’
‘Thanks.’
Ebony negotiated the heavy exit door with Archie’s buggy and stopped outside. She took out her phone as she pushed the buggy one-handed and rang Carter.
‘Have just secured a flat.’
‘Did you enrol in the classes?’
‘I’m on my way there now. You sure Cabrina doesn’t mind about borrowing Archie?’
‘Nah . . . Free childcare. Plus, it’s an outing.’
Now Ebony knew he hadn’t asked Cabrina. ‘Not exactly an ideal activity recommended for a nine-month-old.’
‘He’ll love it. Buy him a Big Mac.’
Ebony shook her head, couldn’t help a smile; she knew Carter was joking. She knew he loved Archie to bits but she also knew Carter had some growing up to do. Still, it left her feeling
hungry; she was now obsessing about a Maccy D’s. As she hung up the phone and peered around the front of the buggy. Archie’s bright brown eyes looked back at her. Ebony was beginning to
think Archie was the perfect child for her. He observed the world and occasionally demanded some attention but it was never for anything unnecessary or frivolous; he never grizzled; he never asked
for something he didn’t really need. Archie smiled at Ebony.
‘Fancy a McFlurry?’ She shook her head;
better not.
She steered Archie’s buggy awkwardly through the revolving college doors. There was a rather tacky Christmas tree with flashing lights just inside the reception area and hanging swathes of
tinsel looping down from the light fittings. She walked up to the reception desk.
‘I would like to talk to someone about enrolling on a teaching course please.’
‘Have you got an appointment?’ Ebony shook her head. ‘Okay.’ The receptionist smiled. ‘Let me see if someone’s free from student advisory to talk to
you.’ She winked at the other receptionist as she pressed the extensions number on her switchboard. ‘Let’s see who we can drag out of the Christmas party.’ She smiled
mischievously at Ebony as she covered the phone with one hand whilst she talked to Ebony in a stage whisper. ‘The college will be closing for Christmas in a week. We’ve all had our
parties today.’ She waited for a response from Ebony but got none so she screwed up her face irritably and swivelled her chair round to the desk adjacent, with her back to Ebony as she waited
for someone to answer the phone and then gave up.
‘First door on your left, corridor straight ahead, down there . . .’ She turned back round and waved her hand in the direction of a corridor leading off from the reception area.
‘They’re not expecting you but they’re all free.’ She smiled coldly. Ebony didn’t register it. She was too busy thinking about her cover story and about whether Archie
might choose now to get restless. Plus Ebony was used to people mistaking her lack of response as rude when really it was just what it said on the tin.
Ebony tried to redeem herself with the receptionist by overdoing the thanks and then pushed Archie past the Christmas tree and down the corridor. She followed the noise coming from a busy office
on her left.
Inside, there was excitement and the smell of mulled wine hung in the air. A young woman honed in on Archie. She knelt by the buggy and breathed mulled wine and turkey dinner into his face.
‘You look just like your mummy,’ she cooed. Ebony smiled at the thought of what Carter would say to that.
‘Yan, there’s a client here.’ The young woman giggled, stood and called across the office. She winked at her colleague – ‘No peace for the wicked.’ A
geeky-looking lad with glasses and what looked like a leftover attempt to grow a moustache for November smiled at her. He had a ‘just got out of bed’ look going on with his hair.
‘Great.’ He grinned sheepishly at Ebony. ‘You thinking of enrolling in a course?’
‘Yeah.’ She nodded. ‘I just really wanted to talk things through.’
He reached out for the slip of paper and held Ebony’s gaze.
‘Of course. Come with me.’ His glasses were dirty. He looked at the piece of paper. ‘Ebony?’ She nodded.
He steered her towards the far side of the room to a quiet corner booth. He sat beside her and steered Archie’s buggy in for her when it got jammed on the leg of a chair. Archie started
grumbling, just enough to warrant paying attention to. The grumbling began to include a few trial screams.
‘If you need to feed him I can find you somewhere quiet?’ Yan asked as if breastfeeding was an everyday occurrence in his world. Only when Ebony didn’t seem to get it did the
red come to his face.
‘I expect he’s hot.’ Ebony stood and pulled back the covers on Archie’s buggy, taking off his hat to reveal a shock of black curls.
She also reached inside the pram cover for the bottle she’d left there.
‘Oh, okay. Do you want me to heat that up?’
‘Please,’ answered Ebony.’
‘No problem.’
Yan took it from her and disappeared into the rooms at the back of the office. Ebony was really glad she’d listened hard to Carter’s instructions as she took Archie out of his buggy
and stripped him down. He was hot, but easily pacified. He stared at Ebony and the surroundings; he seemed to be taking it all in. She was hoping he wouldn’t suddenly think to himself:
hang on a minute
! One of the women stopped to talk to him and he smiled his near toothless grin back at her.
Yan came back and Ebony didn’t have to do much beyond screw the teat on the bottle and check it as Archie grabbed with two hands and started drinking. Ebony was aware of a clock ticking in
her head. Things went in one end – they came out the other after a short interval. She was quite taken aback with the fact that Carter knew a lot more than he let on about Archie’s
routines. He’d shown her how to change a nappy with such precision: it was typical of Carter to have bought himself a special set that included disposable gloves and three different kinds of
wipes. Ebony still didn’t feel she could do it – what if Archie started to howl and she got poop everywhere?
‘Let’s start with form-filling,’ said Yan as he sat back behind his desk.
Age?’
‘Twenty-five.’
‘Ethnicity?’
‘Anglo-Caribbean.’
He looked up and smiled. ‘Lucky you. Do you go to the Caribbean much?’
She nodded. ‘I lived there for just over twelve years.’
‘Whereabouts?’
‘Kingston.’
‘I know it well. Whereabouts?’
Ebony felt heat come to her face. ‘Just near the Adventist church on South Side, Manning Street?’
He shook his head. ‘No, don’t know it. Kingston’s a great party town. What made you come over here?’
‘I was born here. When I had Archie, all the gang shootings in Kingston got me thinking I’d rather live back here. ‘
He looked at her address. ‘What, in super-safe Hackney? I’d rather be in living in the sunshine any day.’
He looked towards Archie, who was holding the bottle for himself as if he’d worked out that Ebony was probably not an expert. ‘I guess you have to think differently. The partying
gets curbed for a bit.’
‘You’ve lived in Jamaica?’
Shit
, thought Ebony.
He nodded, grinned. ‘Lovely. Spent time there when I was young.’
Phew – when he was young. Won’t remember
. She relaxed. ‘My mum was one of those hippy
types,’ he said. ‘She believed in education on the move. We travelled a lot.’
She smiled; she could picture him on a boat, the salt spray on his glasses. Some people were funny when they opened up to her for no reason. Sometimes Ebony thought it was because she left a lot
of silences in the conversation so that people thought they needed to fill the gaps with snippets about their lives. Robbo said she would make a good counsellor. Carter said she should concentrate
on being a good detective and ask more questions.
‘You must have loved it?’
He nodded his head. ‘Most of the time – it was a kid’s dream. No school, no restrictions. Seems a world away now. This is the stark reality of working for a living.’
Archie pushed the bottle away and struggled to sit more upright on Ebony’s lap. He pulled off his shoe and threw it across at Yan. Yan caught it with a lightning reflex.
‘Little boy blue has lost his shoe.’ Yan laughed and handed it back to Ebony, who struggled to put it back onto Archie’s foot, which seemed to have the ability to change size
and shape at will.
‘Your name is interesting,’ Ebony ventured, trying to mask her incompetence. ‘It’s not very British-sounding.’
‘As I said, my mum loved anything foreign.’
He looked back down at his desk and picked up his pen ready to resume filling in the remainder of the form.
‘What about qualifications?’ Ebony looked at him dumbly. ‘Schooling? That kind of thing?’ She’d gone blank for a second. She’d forgotten what it was she was
supposed have.
‘I took Cape examinations – A levels basically.’
‘Okay, great, well that will save you some time – a year of training at least. Okay, now for a few personal details to start. Married or co-habiting with a partner?’ He kept
his eyes on the page as he waited, poised to fill in the blanks.
‘Single parent. I live on my own.’
‘Okay, good.’ Ebony looked up from tickling Archie’s palm with ‘round and round the garden’.
‘I mean you’ll be entitled to the most help,’ he said. ‘It makes the form-filling a bit longer but it’ll be worth it.’ Archie burped loudly. Yan grinned.
Ebony blushed. ‘Sorry. Thanks for your help. I appreciate it.’
‘It’s no problem at all.’
Ebony kept her eyes on Yan as she tickled Archie’s other hand.
‘Yes. It is. I’m looking for a new start. New flat, new life for me and Archie. Just us.’
‘I’m sure you’ll make it. Well . . . if I can help in any way?’ He looked ready to conclude the interview. Ebony thought she’d handled the worst of it – now
she could relax somewhat and try to work on Yan a little. He seemed the sympathetic type.
‘Is this a good college to come to for single parents?’ He looked momentarily flustered and blinked behind his glasses. ‘I mean, is there some social life here? I’m not
much of a party girl but I would like to meet people, you know? Make a few friends. My family aren’t around. It’s just me and Archie, as I said.’
‘Oh yes. I see. It’s a good place if you make an effort. There’s a fair bit of socializing via Facebook, that kind of thing. There’s a Christmas party going on in the
canteen right now. We could butt in if you like? Just say hello. Some of the people you’d be doing the teacher training course with will be in there. Some have been studying for a year or
two. Would you like to meet them?’